


Unforeseen Love

by Emily_Hill



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Blind Character, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-12
Updated: 2016-03-14
Packaged: 2018-05-13 10:39:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 7,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5704576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emily_Hill/pseuds/Emily_Hill
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Danny Williams hated slowly turning blind, but if it wasn't for his blindness he'd have never met Steve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> English is not my first language, so I'm sure there are quite some mistakes, I hope it isn't too bad.  
> I hope you like it!  
> Enjoy!

Danny Williams hoisted the last box of his belongings on the table and looked at the contents, momentarily having forgotten of how little use that was. His weak eyes were just able to distinguish the shape of the books, but the lettering he could not see.

A shadow moved into his line of sight. His friend Kono stood next to him. "Your books? Where do you want us to put them?"  
Danny let his fingers slide along the book covers and snorted. "It's not like they are of any use to me anymore, is it? You can give them away to your cousins. Maybe they'll like to read them in a few years."

''O, it's so horrible that -" Kono sniffed and then continued, ostensibly cheerful: "Thank you. I'm sure they'll like them."  
Danny turned around to the others, or at least to where he thought they would be. "Is there something I can do? Scrub the sink, or anything?"  
''I already did that," his ex-wife Rachel said, a little hesitant.

"I'll make the bed," he said, and carefully shuffled through the house towards the bedroom.  
"Danny, we can do that," Rachel said, and although she hadn't said it, it was evident she meant that he'd only be in the way.  
"Why don't you just rest?"

"Rest?!" Danny crossed his arms. "I'm not tired. I'm not sick. I can't just sit in a chair for the next 50 years, waiting for my life to be over!"  
Silence. He peered around, looking for a glimpse of a face, but he saw nothing recognizable. Where they looking at him? It was more likely that they were exchanging meaningful glances with each other, shaking their heads and full of compassion. Right in front of him, because he couldn't see it anyway.

"Fine, if that's what you want." Feeling his way around, he shuffled to the door. He felt around for a chair and picked it up. "I'm going outside," he said, enjoying the reaction of the women, who quickly jumped aside. 

He made his way past them and kept walking faster, until the chair bumped into the door frame. He heard someone gasp for breath, probably Rachel, but he ignored her.  
He might almost be blind, he was well able to make his own decisions. He put the chair down on the porch and sat down.  
He was overcome by the heat, but he was determined to endure the heat, determined to pretend he enjoyed it.  
And the acting had only just begun.

He hadn't needed the university board to tell him that he could no longer teach. He had known before they knew. He was temporarily relieved from his position, until they knew if his blindness would be reversible. 

The university had bought a house for him, but if he was to believe Kono and Rachel it was only a matter of time before it would collapse.  
Rachel had hired some guy called Steve to renovate the house, because apart from the state the house was in it was beautiful and had a lot of potential, according to her.  
Danny didn't really care, he couldn't see it anyway. As long as he had a roof over his head it was fine by him. 

Danny heaved a sigh. As much as he hated to admit he was tired, he was, although he hadn't done very much to help with moving houses. It was exhausting to have to make an effort to be able to distinguish only silhouettes.  
He leaned back and decided that as soon as he was left alone, he'd make a meal and think of something he could do.

He could hear someone coming outside, and sure enough someone laid a hand on his shoulder. "Danny, we are going home now. Rachel made you some sandwiches. We'll be back tomorrow, before the handyman comes," Kono said.

"I can make my own meal, thank you very much." He could hear Kono sigh, but he didn't really care. He was sick of being treated like a disabled person, even though technically he was disabled. "I'm going to have to take care of myself eventually, that might as well start now." 

"You're right, you're going to have to take care of yourself, but that doesn't mean we will just leave you on your own." Kono kissed him on his cheek. "Bye Danny. See you tomorrow."  
Danny awkwardly returned her kiss. "Thank you Kono, bye." 

He could hear Rachel approaching, her heels clicking on the floor. "Bye Danny, I'll bring Grace tomorrow."  
Danny immediately perked up, smiling at the thought of his daughter. "Bye Rachel, thank you for your help."

He waited until he heard Rachel's car back out of the driveway and went inside, settling for a boring afternoon.

To be continued


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny and Steve meet for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn't very long and I'm not entirely sure about it, but I decided to post it anyway.  
> I'd like to hear what you thought.  
> Enjoy!

Danny had just finished his sandwiches when he heard a car pull into his driveway. He tried to check the time, but even with a gigantic clock it was difficult to see. He wondered who would come to visit him, not able to think of any appointments he'd made. Was there anybody who'd have a reason to visit him here?  
  
There was a short knock on the door and Danny carefully made his way to the door. Once he'd opened it, the person standing in front of him asked "Mister Williams?"  
  
"That's me. I'm sorry, who are you?" Danny strained to see the man in front of him. He couldn't see the entire light blue shirt at once, but he looked muscular enough.  
  
His eyes followed the line of buttons upwards, until he saw a stubbly jaw and a lopsided grin that bared a set of perfectly aligned teeth.  
  
Initially he thought the bright white line that ran across the tanned face was the result of a new blind spot, but as the man turned his head the line also disappeared from his view.  
  
"It's Steve McGarret, I was hired to renovate this house."  
  
Danny strained his eyes to great lengths in order to see Steve's face. The moment he focused on the brown hair at the guy's temple, however, Steve moved and he had lost his anchoring point.  
  
Danny closed his eyes and waited for the burning sensation to go away. Apparently he had made Steve feel uncomfortable. But Steve wasn't the only one feeling uncomfortable. There was a very muscular man on his porch, and as far as Danny could tell he was also quite good-looking. Danny had no idea whatsoever as to what he should do.  
  
***  
  
The gazing eyes reminded Steve of a cat keeping an eye on a mouse hole. He scratched his neck and reminded himself that those piercing blue eyes did not see anything. Ocean colored eyes, useless for anything. Very sad.  
  
However, it was a habit of his to protect people from his unattractive face. And perhaps to protect himself from the questions that undoubtedly would be asked if people saw his face. It would take a while for him to remember that he didn't have to hide his face from Mr. Williams.  
  
Not that he was planning to spend a whole lot of time with him. He was here to work, and he would not get distracted by a man, albeit a very attractive one.  
  
The woman who had hired him hadn't said which jobs needed to be done, but this house needed a lot of maintenance.  
  
Mr. Williams hadn't reacted when he introduced himself, so he decided he'd explain why he was here. "I know I don't start until tomorrow, but I like to come prepared. That's why I always come to see what needs to be done. And I can tell you, it's a long list. Fixing up this house is going to take a long time."  
  
"I don't care how long it's going to take, as long as it happens. Thank you for doing this. My name is Danny, by the way."  
  
Steve almost laughed aloud. That name was perfect for this man. When his sister was talking about a danny, she meant an amazing guy. As far as he could tell, this Danny was quite an amazing guy. He couldn't wait to get to know him.  
  
"Nice to meet you, Danny."  
  
"Likewise. You know what, why don't you come inside, have something to drink? I'd like to get to know the guy that's going to make sure the roof doesn't collapse on me." Steve considered the offer and decided, why not? It wasn't like he had anything to lose, or like he had something else he needed to do. "I'd like that, thank you," he said, following Danny inside.

To be continued

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked it - please review!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Danny talk, and Danny finally resumes doing something he loves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At first I wanted them to really start to know each other, but it didn't feel right.  
> I thought that there needed to be some bond, before they started to really share things.
> 
> I would like to know what you thought.  
> Enjoy!

Danny wasn't really sure why he'd invited Steve inside, but did it really matter? Getting to know this man sounded far better than spending the afternoon on his own. "What would you like to drink?"

"Doesn't really matter, whatever's convenient for you." 

Danny knew the guy probably meant well, but it was still quite frustrating that people felt like they had to be considerate towards him. He decided not to dwell on it, because there would be a lot of situations like this and he would simply have to get used to that.

He grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and handed one of them to Steve. He felt around for a chair and sat down at the table. They chatted for a while, but avoided anything personal, like Danny's blindness.

Although Danny appreciated that the subject didn't come up, he did realise that he had to talk about it eventually, albeit maybe not necessarily with Steve.  
Yet for now, he was okay with the subject being avoided.

He enjoyed talking to Steve, he seemed like a nice guy. Also, it was nice to talk to somebody who hadn't known him before he started losing his vision. People who'd known him before always talked about how sad it was that he was turning blind, losing the life that he'd built for himself. They all seemed to think that his life was over. Maybe it was, but that was something time would tell.  
Steve didn't treat him like a disabled person, at least not yet. Danny was determined not to let it come to that, and also to prove the people wrong that thought his life was over, just because he couldn't see.

There are a lot of blind people who lead a normal life, right? And Danny was intent on being one of them.

***

Steve followed Danny around with his eyes. Once they started talking, he discovered Danny was funny and kind, and it seemed like 'barking dogs seldom bite' applied to him.  
He was a little hesitant as to if he should bring up the topic of Danny's blindness, but he decided it was not really any of his business and he left it to Danny to decide if he wanted to talk about it or not.

He looked around the house, the interior of the house looked quite nice actually.  
The kitchen looked like it had been recently installed, and he'd spotted a grand piano in the living room when he entered the house. He wondered if Danny was the one who played the piano, and if he did, how good he was at it.

He took the last sip of water from the bottle and rose up from the chair he was sitting on. "I should get going, I need to buy some materials," he said. He could be wrong, but Danny actually looked a little disappointed when he said he was leaving. His expression quickly returned to normal though, so Steve wasn't really sure.

***

"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow," Danny said. He was a little disappointed that Steve had to leave, but he understood that he had to. He accompanied Steve to the front door and went inside again. There was no point in waiting outside until he'd left, he wouldn't see him anyway.

He carefully made his way to the grand piano and sat down on the piano stool. Steve's visit had cheered him up and he decided to try to play again. He'd put off doing that, fearing that he would only find that he was not able to play anymore.

He played a few pieces and was relieved when he found that, even without his sight, he was able to play the piano very well.  
It was a little difficult sometimes, but he'd mostly learned to play the pieces by heart and it went amazingly well.

Danny had played piece after piece, when suddenly he heard his phone ring. He answered the phone and was surprised when Rachel asked why he hadn't picked up the phone the last three times she called him.

"I was playing the piano, I didn't even hear the phone ringing. I'm sorry." 

"Don't be, I'm glad you decided to play again. How did it go?" Rachel asked. Danny could hear she was smiling, and he was surprised to note that he was also smiling.  
It had been quite some time since he'd last done that.

"It was amazing," he said. "But why did you actually call me?"

"Well, school ends early tomorrow and I was wondering if I could bring Grace a little earlier than we agreed on. I would drop her off at around two o'clock, if that's okay with you."

"Of course, anything for my monkey."

"Great, so I'll bring her then. Bye Danny."

Danny smiled. "Thank you, Rachel. Tell Grace Danno loves her."

To be continued


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The start of Steve's first day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not really sure about this chapter, but I decided to post it anyway.  
> Please let me know if you liked it or not, so I can change it if you didn't like it.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

The next morning, Danny woke up from a restful sleep for the first time in what seemed like forever.

He had a quick shower and made himself breakfast. Just after he sat down at the table, he could hear a car coming up the driveway.

When he woke up, he'd been a little surprised to find he was kind of looking forward to seeing Steve again.  
He was intrigued by him, and he wanted to get to know him, hear his story.

There was a knock on the door and Danny got up. He opened the door and strained to see the person in front of the door. He recognized Steve, but as soon as his eyes got to Steve's face he turned his head a little. "Good morning, you're early!" Danny said.

"I'm always wide awake around six, so I decided a long time ago to just get up and start my day. I always go for a morning swim, but then I usually start working."

Danny smiled (seriously, why was he so happy since meeting this guy?). "I've never been one to wake up early, and in general I'm not really a morning person. But it's alright with me if you want to start early."

"Well, you do not come across as a grumpy person," Steve said, and it sounded like he was laughing. 

"I do not come across -, wow, my daughter wouldn't agree with you on that one," Danny laughed.

Steve smirked. "I hope never to discover why she wouldn't agree with me."

Danny observed Steve's face, careful not to be too obvious. It looked like there was a scar on the right side of his face, from his temple to the corner of his mouth. He'd already noticed that Steve avoided people being able to see the scar.

"I'll try my best not to be sulky in the morning. It helps if I have coffee, and malasadas. So if you don't want to experience me as a grumpy person, I recommend bringing me both those things."

"So what you're saying is, you expect me to bring you breakfast?" Steve asked.

"Well, no, I don't expect you to, but it is the best way to ensure that I'm in a good mood." Danny said. "Do you want to come in, have some coffee?"

"I should get started, but one mug of coffee should be possible," Steve said and followed Danny inside.

"I always used a French press to make coffee, but that proved to be a little difficult without the use of your eyes. That's why I switched to a capsule machine, but I still haven't used it. I guess I'm a little afraid it isn't as good as the coffee I always used to make."

Danny didn't know why he was rambling so much, but Steve didn't seem to mind.  
He took two capsules from the holder next to the coffee machine. "I don't know what kind of coffee this is, Rachel got them for me."

"As long as it's coffee, it's fine. I mostly drink black coffee, but sometimes I drink it with grass-fed, unsalted butter."

"What the hell?! Why do you do that?!" was the only thing Danny could come up with. "Are you out of your mind? What's the matter with you?"

"I do it to boost energy and to enhance brain function - you should try it." Steve didn't appear to care about Danny's rant.

"Are you implying i need to enhance my brain function? And no, thank you, I'd rather have my heart attack the old-fashioned way."

"Well, suit yourself. But I really recommend trying it." Steve was wise enough to ignore Danny's question about his brain function and the discussion was over.

"Yeah, yeah. Maybe I will, sometime." Danny wasn't really planning to, but Steve didn't respond. He took the mug that Danny handed him and took a sip. "Wow, that's amazing. I might get some more coffee today, if that's okay with you."

"Of course, but I don't have any grass-fed, unsalted butter, so your brain function isn't going to be enhanced today, even though it seems like it could use some enhancement."

Steve laughed and drank his coffee. "Well, thank you. I'm going to start working now, before the morning is over." He stood up and left, leaving a smiling Danny behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that was it for this chapter - please review!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still Steve's first day...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally had the time to write another chapter for this story, so here it is.  
> I'd really like to know what you think! Enjoy!

After Steve had gone outside, Danny ate his breakfast. He didn't really know what he should do, something that had never been a problem when he could still see. He decided to ask Rachel about the local vision rehabilitation agency she'd been talking about. He wanted to be as independent as possibble, even though he didn't know yet if his blindness would be permanent.

He sat down at the piano, starting with a classical piece. He totally lost himself in the music and startled when someone put a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and saw Steve standing behind him.

"I'm sorry I startled you, you didn't hear me. I just wanted to ask you if it would be okay if I ate my lunch inside," Steve said, and even though Danny couldn't see him very well, he thought Steve looked a bit sheepishly.

"Of course! Let me make us something to eat," Danny said, getting up from the piano bench.

"Oh, no, that's not what I meant, I brought my own lunch, I just thought it would be nice for both of us to have some company," Steve said, stammering a little.

This brought a smile to Danny's face, but he quickly hid his amusement. "I don't mind, seriously. You don't have to bring your own lunch, my fridge is full enough to last me six weeks. So you'd do me a favour if let me make you something to eat."

"Okay, fair enough. I just need to grab my stuff," Steve said, already walking out of the house.

Danny had just made a few sandwiches and was cutting some fruit when he suddenly heard Steve behind him. He jumped a little and cut himself. "How do you do that?! I didn't even hear you coming!"

"It's a talent," Steve said, sounding like he didn't really want to talk about it. "Let me see your finger," he said, holding out his hand.

Danny reluctantly complied. "It doesn't look too bad. Do you know where the first aid kit is? I'll patch you right up," Steve said after a few seconds.

"It's in one of the upper cupboards," Danny said, not entirely sure, so he added "I think"

"Okay, I'll find it," Steve said, rummaging through the cupboards. "I've got it."

He walked over to Danny and put the kit on the counter. He gently cleaned the cut and put a bandage on it. "You're lucky it's not your fingertip," he said when he was done.

"I know. You do know that this is your fault, right?" Danny said, inspecting Steve's work as well as he could.

"How is this my fault? You were the one with the knife, buddy, not me," Steve said, smirking a little. 

"You were the one creeping up on me, almost giving me a heart attack! The least you can do is apologise." Danny desperately tried to hide his own smirk. 

"Again, you're the one who can't handle a knife, besides, I'm the one who patched you up." Steve started cleaning up the mess he'd made. 

"I wouldn't have needed patching up if you hadn't scared half to death," Danny insisted.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry, okay?"

"Apology is noted, acceptance is pending," Danny said, picking up the plate with sandwiches and quickly turning around, but not before he saw Steve's jaw drop.

Steve didn't reply. He probably just didn't know what to say, Danny smirked to himself. Instead he said, "can I use your bathroom?"

"Yeah, it's the second door to your left down the hall," Danny said, sitting down at the table.

***

When Steve returned to the kitchen, Danny was leaning back in his chair with a smug grin on his face. Steve shook his head. That guy was unbelievable, but he still kind of liked him. "Okay, let's eat," he said, taking a seat in front of Danny.

They ate in companionable silence for a while. "That performance was pretty impressive," Steve suddenly said, with his mouth full. "I bet you were quite young when you started playing."

Danny blushed a little, which surprised Steve a little. "Thank you. I was, I was about four when I started playing."

"You're really good, it's nice you can still play." Steve immediately regretted his comment, but Danny didn't seem to mind.

"I hadn't played since my vision got really bad, but yesterday I decided to just give it a try," he said, a soft smile playing around his lips. "My daughter loves it when I play for her."

"You have a daughter?" Steve asked, a little curious.

"Yeah, Grace, she's seven, and she's amazing," Danny said, starting to pile the plates.

Steve opened his mouth to say something, but it was like Danny had read his mind. "Her mom and I are divorced," he quickly said. "You remember the lady who hired you? That's her mom."

Steve couldn't really picture Danny married to the strict British woman who'd hired him. He wouldn't ask what happened, although he was a little curious. Maybe later.

"Actually Grace is coming over this afternoon, so you can meet her." It was obvious Danny thought Steve would like to meet his daughter, and he didn't want do disappoint him. 

Steve liked kids, he really did. But one thing he didn't like about them since it happened, was their brutal honesty. As soon as kids saw his face, they wanted to know what had happened. And Steve really didn't like to talk about that day.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve meets Grace for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I can't really believe it, but here's the second chapter for today...  
> I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please don't hesitate to point out any mistakes.  
> Reviews are greatly appreciated!

Steve wanted to be sure that Danny's daughter wouldn't be able to see his face right away, so he stayed behind the house. When he heard a car pull up to the house, he peeked around the corner of the house. 

A girl jumped out of the car, running to the house with her arms extended. He thought she looked like her mom, she did have the same brown hair at least.

"Danno!" she called out, and he could hear Danny's reply, a smile evident in his voice. "Hey monkey! I missed you!"

He saw Danny's ex-wife get out of the car. She leaned against the car, seemingly a little uncertain.

Danny walked over to her, Grace in his arms. "Hey Rach, thanks for dropping her off," he said when he reached her. "Where's her stuff?"

Rachel reached into the car and grabbed a bag. "I brought some stuff she needs for now. I'll bring the rest of her stuff tomorrow, probably sometime during the afternoon."  
She looked around, as if she was looking for something. Or rather, someone. "I thought Mr. McGarrett would be working today."

Danny put Grace down and grabbed the bag. He slightly shrugged. "He's around somewhere, I believe he's at the back." Steve immediately returned to his work, careful to slightly turn his face away from them. He heard running footsteps come closer.

"Easy, Grace!" he heard Danny call out. A brown-haired hurricane came around the corner of the house and practically skidded to a halt.

Grace studied him from head to toe, and he fought the urge to shuffle a bit uncomfortably under her gaze. It was like she didn't even notice the scar, though.

"Hey, Gracie, I'm Steve. It's great to meet you," he said after a few seconds of silence. She gave him a sincere smile, and at moment Steve thought that although she might have Rachel's looks, she was actually a lot like her father.

"Hello," she said, a little shy, shaking his hand. Danny and Rachel came up to them. "Hello, Mr. McGarrett. I see you've met Grace?" Rachel smiled a little.

"I did, you have a great daughter," he said. He was glad Grace hadn't mentioned the scar, and Rachel didn't really pay any attention to it either. She was probably used to it by now, he thought a little cynical.

"Why don't you all go inside, have something to drink?" Rachel said, immediately taking control. When Steve had first met her, he thought she was a bit uptight, but when he saw her more often, he discovered that was just who she was.

He looked at Danny, who shrugged and gave Grace a wink. "Come on, monkey, auntie Kono made your favourite cookies!"

Grace squealed, grabbing his hand. "She made peanut butter chocolate chip cookies?"

Danny smiled at her excitement. "She did, just for you. What do you think, would Mr. McGarrett like them too?"

"Of course! They're the best!" she said, motioning for Steve to follow them inside the house. She looked at Rachel. "Aren't you coming?" 

"No, Grace, I need to go. Have fun, and behave yourself, okay?" she said, bending down for a kiss.

Grace complied and immediately turned to Steve. "You're coming, right?" 

"Of course, like I'd say no to cookies!" Steve said, smiling down at Danny's daughter. She extended her hand to him and wanted to pull both men inside.

"Monkey, first you need to say goodbye to your mom," Danny said in a gentle tone. She wiggled a little impatiently, but waved at her mom. "Bye mom!"

As soon as Rachel drove off, she let go of both of their hands and ran inside. "I like your new house, Danno! It's much better than the old one!"

"I like it too, and Mr. McGarrett here is going to make it even better," he said, smiling at his daughter and carefully searching his way to the kitchen.

Grace grabbed Steve's hand again and followed her father into the kitchen. She sat down at the table. "I like auntie Kono's cookies," she said, looking pleased. "But I like yours better."

Steve looked at Danny a little surprised. He didn't strike him as someone who baked, but looks sometimes were deceiving. After all, Danny hadn't struck him as someone who played the piano either.

Danny reddened a little. "That's my little sycophant," he said to Steve.

"What's a syco... what's that?" Grace said, wrinkling her nose. 

"That means you're very nice, but only because you hope to get something in return," Danny explained, opening a cupboard.

"But I really do like your cookies better, Danno," Grace said, her face very serious.

"Alright, I'm glad to hear that. You can't say that to auntie Kono though, that wouldn't be very nice," Danny said. He'd found the cookie jar and put it down on the table.

"Grace thinks you ought to drink milk with cookies, so would you like a glass of milk?" he said, opening the fridge and taking out a carton of milk.

Steve wanted to help him, but he figured that Danny would probably be sick of people who wanted to help by now, so he just leaned back into his chair. "Of course! You have to drink milk when you eat cookies," he said, winking at Grace.

Danny got three glasses from a cupboard and sat down at the table. He poured three glasses of milk, using his finger in order to determine whether the glass was full.

Steve was impressed by Danny's independence. According to Rachel, his sight hadn't gotten this bad until about only two weeks ago. Danny seemed to be coping pretty well.

Danny handed Grace a glass of milk. "Well, do you want a cookie? Leave some for Mr. McGarrett, okay? And for me too, of course."

Steve opened his mouth, a little uncertain if he should say this. "You know Gracie, you can call me uncle Steve, if you like."

Grace gave him a beaming smile. "I would like that very much!"

Danny's smile almost matched Grace's. "I think she likes you," he joked, taking a bite of a cookie.

Steve got a self-satisfied smirk on his face and stuffed an entire cookie in his mouth.

"It's probably because you act like a child," Danny said, grinning at Grace, who looked at Steve with a praising look, her mouth slightly open.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It seems Grace really likes 'Uncle Steve'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here's another chapter, enjoy!  
> Thanks to everyone who reviewed or left Kudos, I really appreciate it!  
> I'd really like to hear your thoughts!

They talked for a while, or rather, Grace did. She chattered nineteen to the dozen, about anything and everything. Steve seemed to loosen up, and when Danny exerted himself to see Steve, he saw the guy was leaning back in his chair with a relaxed smile.

He listened attentively to Grace, he nodded, asked questions and laughed at her jokes. He seemed relieved that she hadn't said anything about his scar. Knowing Grace, she hadn't even looked twice at the scar, and Danny was really proud of her for that.

Steve abruptly stood up after about half an hour. He seemed almost a little reluctant to get back to work, but he put his glass in the sink and thanked Grace for sharing her cookies with him.

Grace was disappointed when Steve went outside, but when Danny asked her if she wanted to see her new room, her disappointment was immediately forgotten.

Danny covered Grace's eyes with his hands, leading her to the room. He almost chuckled, thinking it was a little ironic, sort of like the blind leading the blind.

Grace had not seen her new room yet, though she had picked out paint for the walls. When Danny took away his hands, Grace let out a shriek of excitement. "I love it, Danno! It's so beautiful!"

Danny hadn't really seen the room either, but he was confident that Rachel had done a good job. Rachel had always been good at decorating their house, even when money had been tight. Grace hugged him and he pulled her close to him, pressing his nose into her hair.

***

Grace sat down at the table with her sketchbook and crayons after she'd explored her room. "I'm going to make a drawing for Uncle Steve," she announced.

"That's really nice of you, what are you going to draw?" Danny grabbed the cookie jar and put it back in the cupboard. He knew Grace wouldn't be able to contain herself if the jar was on the table.

"I don't know, I think I'm going to draw the ocean. Or maybe our new house," she said, wobbling on her chair.

"I'm sure he'll really like it," Danny said, walking over to her and giving her a kiss on the top of her head. "Is your glass empty?"

"No, but I'm going to drink it now, otherwise it might fall on my drawing," she said, picking up her glass and downing the milk in one gulp.

"You've got a mustache," Danny grinned. He couldn't actually really see it, but he was fairly certain, since she almost always had one after drinking milk.

"And don't think I won't see it if you wipe your mouth with your hand," he joked. He always tried to quip a little to Grace about losing his sight. She didn't have to know how difficult it sometimes was for him, especially when he thought about the fact he might never be able to actually see her grow up.

Despite his efforts though, she could always sense when he was having a hard time. She might not always understand everything her dad was going through, but she always tried her best to cheer him up. Even though Danny and Rachel had made a lot of mistakes, they had done one thing right; raising their daughter. Grace really was an amazing kid.

***

Steve was repairing the roof, and he was surprised when he found himself humming a song. He'd really enjoyed talking to Grace, she was refreshing.

Sometimes, he thought of how his life would be if he got married and had children. But then he would think about his face, and how he'd gotten the scar. He was pretty sure no woman would want anything to do with him as soon as they'd discover the truth.

He'd long ago made peace with that, but Grace had something about her that made him wish his life was different. But for now, he was happy just being 'Uncle Steve'.

***

When Danny started on dinner, Grace suddenly jumped from her seat. "Why don't we ask Uncle Steve to stay for dinner? That would be really nice, and I could give him my drawing afterwards."

Danny hesitated a little, not really sure what to say. He didn't know if Steve would appreciate the offer, maybe he just wanted to get home. On the other hand, Steve had really seemed to enjoy himself that afternoon.

"Can we please ask him to have dinner with us?" Grace said, practically pleading and jumping up and down in excitement.

"Alright, but if he doesn't want to stay, he doesn't have to," Danny said, basically to deaf ears. Grace was already out the door to go ask Steve.

***

Steve was just coming down the ladder when he heard the door open. He could hear Grace's running footsteps come closer. "Uncle Steve!" she called out, and he felt his heart warm.

"Yeah, Gracie?" he said, walking towards her.

"Do you want to have dinner with us? Danno said you could!" she said, grabbing his hand. She looked up at him with such a pleading look in her eyes that Steve would never have been able to say no to her, even if he'd wanted to.

He would really like to stay. He pretended to have to think about it, though, just to tease Grace. "Uhm, I don't know," he said, and immediately her face clouded. "I guess I could stay, maybe," he said, and her face brightened again.

"Okay, I'd like to stay for dinner," he said, smiling at her. "But I need to clear away my stuff first, alright?"

"Okay, I'm going to tell Danno you want to stay!" she shouted, running back to the house. Steve laughed at that, she probably didn't have to anymore, considering how loud she'd been. He placed his stuff in the car and went inside, looking forward to dinner.

 

To be continued


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here's another chapter, I hope you like it!  
> Forgive any mistakes, this is posted from my phone so I'm sure it's worse than it normally is ;)  
> I'd really like to hear your thoughts!

When Steve came in, Danny was chopping tomatoes. Thinking about what had happened that afternoon, Steve made some noise so Danny wouldn't startle and cut himself again.  
Danny was making a quick dinner, consisting of Italian burgers and a salad. It smelled delicious, and Steve's mouth was practically watering.

"So I see you couldn't resist my daughter with her puppy dog eyes?" Danny asked, without even bothering to turn around. "Just take a seat, it won't be long now," he said. 

Steve sat down at the table. He looked around for Grace, but she wasn't in the kitchen. "Grace is stowing away her stuff," Danny said, like he could read Steve's mind. "I think she's almost done."

He was right, Grace entered the kitchen a few seconds later. She walked over to the counter and grabbed the plates that were on top of it. "Danno always lets me set the table," she said.

"Do you like to help?" Steve asked. She seemed like a person who liked to help other people, especially her dad.

"I do, but mom never lets me so anything. Danno always says I'm a big girl, so he lets me help him," she said, obviously proud her dad thought she was a big girl. Steve wondered why she always called her dad 'Danno', but he didn't say anything.

When Grace finished setting the table Danny handed her the bowl of salad. "Careful, monkey," he said.

He carried the plate with the burgers and sat down at the table, slumping his shoulders a bit. He quickly sat upright again thought, after a quick glance at Grace.

Steve was pretty sure Danny would do anything to save his daughter from seeing her dad was having a hard time.

They finished dinner fairly quickly, but that was only because Danny ordered Grace to stop talking at one point. Steve was sure they would have been at the table for hours of it wasn't for Danny's warning. Not that he would have cared, he was having an amazing time.

He did agree with Danny though, simply because it was obvious Danny was fairly tired. It was probably exhausting to have to strain so much, only to see very little. 

That's why, after they'd eaten, he said "You know what, Grace? Why don't you help me clean everything up? Danny was the one who prepared dinner, so I think it's only fair if we do the cleaning."

Grace perked up at that, happy to help her 'Danno'. Steve had noticed she'd thrown her dad a few worried glances.

They quickly cleared everything away and Steve did the washing-up.

When they were done, Steve looked at Danny. He was practically half asleep. "Do you want me to read to you?" he asked Grace, even though he hadn't read to somebody for a long time. 

Grace didn't even answer, she just grabbed his hand and went to her room.

"I really like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, can you read it to me?" she asked, grabbing the book from her nightstand.

"Of course I can! That's a great book!" Steve said, sitting down next to her on the bed.

"Wait, maybe it's a good idea to get you ready for bed first, so we can surprise your dad" he said, regretting it a little as soon as he'd said it.

Grace thought it was a great idea - simply because she didn't know how bad Steve was at doing a lot of the things he's just offered to do, Steve thought. He was sure he'd help Danny out of the frying-pan, right into the fire.

There was no going back now, though. He asked Grace what sne needed and followed her to the bathroom.

He quickly showered her and toweled her dry. She slipped into her underwear and pyjamas and handed him a hairbrush.

Steve looked at it, not really sure what she expected of him. "You need to brush my hair, silly. And then you have to braid it," she said after a while.

Steve panicked a little, but he wouldn't let her down. He carefully brushed her hair, which was easy enough. But then came the hard part. He tried to remember how Mary always used to braid her hair, and he thought he would be able to do it.

Half an hour later, he was finally done. Grace's hair was tied in two braids, that didn't look that bad, considering. 

He felt strangely accomplished, looking at the little girl. He took her hand and let her to get bedroom, finally ready to read to her.

***

Danny suddenly startled awake, looking around to see where he was. He saw the kitchen had been cleaned, but he didn't see Grace, or Steve for that matter.

He got up and walked out of the kitchen to look for them. He could see the door of the bathroom was open, so he took a look there. The floor was a little wet, and he almost slipped. He wondered what was going on.

He walked to Grace's bedroom and carefully opened the door. He was amazed by what he saw.

Grace, who was already wearing her pyjamas, leaned against Steve, who was reading to her. Danny was strangely touched by the sight of Steve and his daughter like this.

He tried to silently walk away, but apparently he didn't try hard enough, because Steve stopped reading.

"Hey, I didn't know you were awake. I don't know if you even appreciate me doing this, but I wanted to thank you for an amazing dinner," he said.

Danny didn't really know what to say to that. Normally when people wanted to thank him for something like that, they just said so. They didn't help him by practically putting his daughter to bed. In the end, he just said "Thanks, I really appreciate it."

He smiled at Grace. "Did you have a good time with Uncle Steve?"

"I did, he's really nice!" she said, stiffling a yawn. 

"Alright monkey, it's time to go to sleep. Tomorrow is another day," Danny smiled.

 

To be continued


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm terribly sorry for abandoning this story for so long.  
> My husband was involved in an accident. A drunk driver ran him of the road, and he was pretty seriously injured.  
> I've been running around like crazy, from home to work to the hospital and back home again, so I didn't really have time to write.  
> Luckily he's on the mend now and he's almost well enough to come home. Wow, sorry for this load of clutter!
> 
> Sorry if there are any mistakes, I have written this chapter rather quickly. Here you go (finally!).

The next day it was a saturday. Danny was awakened by Grace jumping on his bed. "Danno, I made you breakfast!"

"Wow, that's really nice!" Danny said, trying not to cringe at the thought of what a mess the kitchen must be.

Grace handed him a glass. "Here's some orange juice. I didn't know how the coffee machine works. And I've made toast, and I've made you a bowl of cornflakes."

Danny took a sip of orange juice and handed the glass back to Grace. "Can you put it on the nightstand? I'd like to eat that toast and the cornflakes," he said.

He didn't really know if he would indeed like it. That's why he was saving the orange juice, so he could rinse away the taste if it was really bad.

It tasted pretty good, if you didn't count the fact that the toast was burned. He finished his breakfast and gave Grace a kiss on the top of her head. "Thank you monkey, that was great!"

He threw back the covers and got out of bed. "Do you still have to eat?"

"I do. I want pancakes, so I didn't eat yet." Grace said, jumping of the bed. Danny smirked. Rachel had already expected this, so she'd made pancake batter and put it in the fridge.

"We can do something about that," he said, slipping a shirt over his head and putting on a pair of jeans. "You know what, why don't you go get dressed, then Danno will call you when breakfast is ready."

He went to the kitchen and turned on the stove. He'd made pancakes very often, even since his vision worsened, so he was pretty sure he could do this. He didn't need his sight to make his daughter happy.

He baked a pile of pancakes and put the plate down on the table. Then he cut some fruit and put the bowl down next to the pancakes. "Gracie, breakfast is ready!"

Danny wasn't really sure if Steve would come to work today. He'd really enjoyed his company the previous evening. After he'd put Grace to bed, they had talked for a while.

He figured he'd find out soon enough if Steve would come today . Sure enough, just after they'd sat down, Steve entered the kitchen. Danny wondered how he was able to enter the house so silently

"Hi Uncle Steve! Would you like some pancakes?"

"Well, I've already had breakfast." Steve said. "but one won't hurt," he hastily added when Grace looked a little dissappointed. He sat down next to Grace.

Danny got up and got a plate out of the cupboard for Steve. Steve dug in, and three pancakes later he said, through a mouthful of pancake, "These are delicious!"

Grace laughed a little, but then said, very seriously, "You shouldn't talk with your mouth full, uncle Steve. That's gross, and also rude, Danno says."

Steve's cheeks flushed a little, probably because a little girl had just lectured him about manners. "Okay, Gracie," he said, after he'd emptied his mouth.

Steve looked around the kitchen, probably just because he was looking for something else to talk about, Danny smirked. "What happened in here?"

"Grace made me breakfast," Danny said, as if that explained everything, which it did, of course, if you know how seven-year-olds are.

"Oh," Steve said, and then he seemed to get it, and he said "Oh," again. Only this time he sounded like he understood what Danny was saying.

"Well, thanks for the pancakes, but I really need to get to work now," he said, getting up from his chair.

"Anytime," Danny said.  
  
TBC

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> I'd like to know what you think.


End file.
